Good Enough
by x.Radish.x
Summary: So take care what you ask me, 'cause I can't say no… Good Enough - Evanescence ATLA Old work: 2007


Disclaimer: All characters mentioned in the following fan fiction do not belong to me - their creators are Mike and Brian, Avatar God-s.

The included lyrics (the ones in italics) do not belong to me either: they belong to Evanescence.

_Under your spell again_

_I can't say no to you_

I'm certainly glad she hasn't asked me to do anything...drastic. Because just looking into those deep pools of blue on her mocha skin renders me useless and I find it hard to resist those dark, rose-petal lips... Funny to think that I, Zuko, prince of the Fire Nation, could be wavered by a Waterbending peasant girl. Mind you, she's a very pretty peasant girl...

_Crave my heart and it's bleeding in your hands_

_I can't say no to you_

_Shouldn't let you torture me so sweetly_

She's always just out of my reach, I can look as much as I please, but am forbidden to touch. It's like a thin wall of glass between us, easy to shatter but strong enough to hold me back from her, to keep me from telling her that I...I...

I love her.

I honestly should forget her, after all, she's far beneath me: a mere bush pig that Bends water and rides on a _flying bison_. A highly unlikely coupling for royalty such as myself. This easy enough to tell myself, but my heart does by no means listen. Every glimpse of that lovely cocoa skin, every snippet of her voice my ears dare to catch, is enough to send those rational thoughts back to their cages and for the longings of touching her face for even just a moment in time come trickling back from the subconscious.

_Now I can't let go of this dream_

_I can't breathe but I feel..._

_Good enough._

Of course, it's not as though I think that I'm not _good enough_ for the water wench: it's simply a matter of whether she's good enough for _me_. I can't just allow myself to be attracted to anyone that may pass me. She needs to be stunning and tall and curvy, the perfect girl to stand beside the Fire Lord and make him look even more impressive.

_I feel good enough_

_For you_

But Katara...that name is so sweet as it rolls over my tongue, so I never dare speak it in fear of falling further into her...Katara is more than that. She's not a manikin bride designed to cling to her Fire Lord's arm like a lost child while he rules over all he sees. She's...she's...something more. I'm not exactly sure what, though. My complete opposite, for one thing. Just how would it look, a Waterbender in subtle blue standing in contrast to a Firebender in harsh red? A sight enough to make my father chuckle. And her element is _water_: we were made to clash. If we were ever to touch we would dissolve into steam...ok, maybe not literally, but still...

Touch. That one thought makes me shiver all over. Just the inkling, the suggestion of her fingers wound around mine, my hands in her hair and her voice in my ear sends shivers up and down my body.

_Drink up sweet decadence_

_I can't say no to you_

I can't let myself slip any further from the throne I was born to sit on. If I _were_ to let these rogue thoughts develop into actions, it would surely jeopardise my future even further from this exile. But, decadence seems so sweet, so tantalising...at times it seems so easy to just let everything go and forget the war, forget the Avatar, forget the life I was born to live.

I'm certainly glad she hasn't asked me to.

_And I've completely lost myself _

_And I don't mind_

_I can't say no to you_

Day by day, I'm losing all logic thought and sliding further into her. Little urges to hear her voice become insatiable cravings that drive me near-insane. Mere thought of her face, of her scent become dreams so vivid that I find it hard to believe they haven't really happened. She's always beckoning me to follow her, but I can't, she's frozen my feet to the ground and no matter how hard I hit them with flames, no matter how much heat I feel radiating from me I can't break the ice. She slowly fades away from me, like mist on the wind, seeping away wisp by wisp until she becomes horrific nothingness. I scream to her, I try to grab her as she blows past me in blue wafts but she slips through my fingers like water.

I always wake in a cold sweat, a hard feeling like stones in the pit of my stomach. I feel as though my fire's gone out.

_Shouldn't let you conquer me completely_

_Now I can't let go of this dream_

_Can't believe that I feel _

_Good enough_

It's these times that I lose the structure of myself. I forget my royalty, I forget my stature as a Firebender, that I was born to rule, that I can never sink so low to love a peasant girl...

And when I finally regain my usual state of mind, I hate myself for knowing that I already have.

_It's been such a long time coming _

_But I feel good..._

It's terrifying, knowing that my future lies in her hands. If she were just to ask me that one question, just to tell her that I love her, all I have worked for would die from my heart and I would be a victim of my own love for her. Even if she didn't love me back, just letting her know would make me forget the throne and my entire life. My whole world would be darkened and she would be my only chance of light.

My question to her is, "Am I good enough?"

But I feel I'm not. Despite what I said earlier, despite my pride and my status as Prince Zuko, heir to the throne of the Fire Lord, I feel as though I can't possibly be enough for her. Even though she's only a peasant, lower than the scum on my boots in society, she's so incredibly high in my mind I couldn't possibly hope to reach her.

_And I'm still waiting for the rain to fall_

_Pour real life down on me_

And now, as I sit by the fireside and contemplate these thoughts, I look into the sky and wonder where she is right now. Uncle always takes my star gazing the wrong way, deciding that it's just an obsession that has developed from searching for the Avatar. In a way, this is good: I don't want him knowing about this unquenchable need for Katara. But at this particular moment in time he's not with me to reprimand me for staring into the skies and to tell me to get some rest - he's fallen into a dead slumber and is snoring in his tent not too far away. His snores are the only sound, apart from the crackling of the fire and the humming of crickets.

All of a sudden, the breaking of a stick punctures the rumble of Uncle's snores. I whip around, startled from my thoughts, fire burning at my fists: and see a blue-clad figure frozen on the edge of the clearing.

"Katara?"

_'Cause I can't hold on_

_To anything this good_

She Bends water from the skin on her hip, lashing it threateningly before her.

"I won't tell you where he is, Zuko. Not without a fight," she snarls, her azure eyes flashing like the glint of fire on the water she Bends. I let the fire in my hands burn into nothing and I try to look nonchalant, despite the rapid beating of my heart. This is my chance: it's just me and her, with no one to interrupt. I highly doubt that the Avatar and Katara's brother would be awake at this hour.

"I don't want a fight," I tell her, my face as blank as I can make it. She doesn't trust me. The water still hovers in the air, guided by minute twists of her hands.

"What do you want, then?" she asks. "Information? A hostage? Avatar bait?"

"No. I want...I..."

_...enough_

_Am I good enough_

_For you to love me too?_

"Well? Spit it out!" she hisses, the water bulging with her annoyance.

It's so wrong, this need for her. It will ruin my life. But it wants so badly to get out.

"Tell me, Zuko!"

There's that question, the one I can't refuse. I can't, I won't say no.

I'll use it to tell her how I feel.

"I love you."

I wait for repulse to cross her face, which is lit by the flickering light of the camp fire. I wait for her scream. I wait for the darkness to engulf me as she runs from me.

None of this happens.

"W-what?" she stutters, her eyes widening with bemusement. Firelight dances in those sapphire pits, making them sparkle and shine even brighter than usual. It reflects off that thick, muddy silk that is her hair. "You...Zuko..."

"I know, it's so wrong. I shouldn't be telling you, I should be controlling myself. But I can't. Please Katara..." I find myself sinking so low as to beg her, to plead for her to feel the same way as I do.

"I don't understand. Why...?" Wonder is clear on her face as she steps into the campsite, no more than three feet from me. I resist the urge to touch her face; to run my hands through her silky locks.

"Your..._eyes_. Your skin. Your scent. Just..._you_." I find the words just spilling from my mouth, months of pent up feelings escaping all at once, leaving my tongue tied and breathless. Or perhaps it's simply her presence?

She searches my face for any sign of insincerity. She will find none.

"You mean that, don't you?" she whispers. I take a step toward her, feeling my heart race at the closeness of her. She's so little, such a petite perfection staring straight into my eyes.

"Of course I do."

She can't tear her eyes away. Those dark, full lips mouth wordlessly as she decides how to deal with my confession. Finally, she presses close to my chest and tilts her head upward.

"Kiss me."

I can't refuse, and I close the distance between us and feel warmth no fire could provide flood through me.

I've completely jeopardised my chances as Fire Lord, but I don't care at all.

_So take care what you ask me_

_'Cause I can't say no_.

-End-


End file.
